It’s been over two years since AB 1124 was signed into law on October 6, 2015. The bill required the California Division of Workers’ Compensation (DWC) to develop and implement a drug formulary by July 1, 2017. After several proposals, comment periods, and public hearings, the DWC pushed back implementation to January 1, 2018. The hope was by delaying implementation, the DWC would have more time to develop the formulary, addressing stakeholders concerns throughout the process, and allow providers, PBMs, pharmacies and insurers time to review and implement the final formulary into their processes.

What's happening this week in workers' compensation? IWP's weekly legislative wrap-up, State of the States, keeps you up to date on important matters within the workers compensation and pharmacy arena.

Do you need a prescription for your medication or can you just purchase it at a local store? Is your medication a controlled substance with certain restrictions on how it can be prescribed or filled? Understanding drug categorization is at times a frustrating and confusing topic for patients.

With the holiday season fast approaching, many companies are preparing for the higher volume of business by hiring seasonal employees. In 2016 alone, retailers in the United States hired around 570,000 people just for the holiday season. In 2017, employers are expected to hire even more! If you, like many others, plan to seek seasonal employment this year, there are a few important things you should know to help protect yourself from getting lost in the holiday employment shuffle.

What's happening this week in workers' compensation? IWP's weekly legislative wrap-up, State of the States, keeps you up to date on important matters within the workers compensation and pharmacy arena.

When you have a prescription to fill, what makes you pick one pharmacy over another? Sometimes its convenience: it’s around the corner from your home, or it’s in the lobby of the hospital you were discharged from. Often filling a prescription can be more complicated, especially when you’re a workers’ comp claimant. A home delivery pharmacy, especially a home delivery pharmacy that specializes in workers’ compensation, may suit your specific needs better than a retail pharmacy.

What's happening this week in workers' compensation? IWP's weekly legislative wrap-up, State of the States, keeps you up to date on important matters within the workers compensation and pharmacy arena.

While opioids have a proper role in pain management, much of the recent news related to opioids focuses on their dangerous and addictive nature. Adverse effects of opioids have touched countless lives and with the recent announcement by President Trump declaring the opioid epidemic a national public health emergency, countless people have become aware that opioids are associated with addiction, abuse, diversion, and other risks. While it’s important to know that using opioids alone is dangerous, the combination of opioids with other medications can often be even more dangerous.

What's happening this week in workers' compensation? IWP's weekly legislative wrap-up, State of the States, keeps you up to date on important matters within the workers compensation and pharmacy arena.

These days it seems chronic traumatic encephalopathy, more commonly known as CTE has become synonymous with the NFL. CTE is a degenerative brain disease often associated with repeated blows to the head. It’s a unique disease because it manifests itself differently than other injuries or diseases. The problems associated with it often arise years after the hits to the head, and when the symptoms start to appear they vary from person to person. Some individuals suffer from memory loss or dementia, others depression and confusion. But most importantly, we currently have no tests to diagnose CTE until the individual has passed away and their brain is examined. Furthermore, that only occurs when an individual donates their brain for research.